


Knock Three Times

by tuliptoes



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fluff, Neighbors, Plot What Plot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-07
Updated: 2020-08-07
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:02:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,533
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25758532
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tuliptoes/pseuds/tuliptoes
Summary: Jaime is home when a knock on the door leads to an unexpected encounter.
Relationships: Jaime Lannister/Brienne of Tarth
Comments: 68
Kudos: 203
Collections: Jaime x Brienne Fic Exchange 2020





	Knock Three Times

**Author's Note:**

  * For [earthwindandfiber](https://archiveofourown.org/users/earthwindandfiber/gifts).



> Prompt: 
> 
> Someone is sitting in their quiet apartment, eating dinner alone. Suddenly, someone else bursts in and barricades the door behind them. They tell the other not to give them away. Noises come from the hallway outside.
> 
> So, it's not exactly that, but it's the fluffy version of that idea.
> 
> Enjoy!

Jaime expected many things from his life, and many things were expected from him.

When he was younger and his mother would read him fables about brave knights and fair maidens, he expected that he would be like a knight in the stories, righting wrongs and protecting the innocent, just like his heroes.

He told his father that, and the man laughed at him, told him that his dream was absurd, knights didn’t exist anymore, if they ever had. Then he kneeled down to Jaime and told him that his dream didn’t matter, Jaime was going to take over the family investment business, and that was that.

But Jaime was only six, and he only remembered that his father frightened him, and not the words he spoke.

Jaime expected that his new brother would make a wonderful addition to his family; he and Cersei could have the third they were lacking when they played together, and when his parents focused on the baby, the twins could get away with doing what they wanted to, not what they were told to.

But that didn’t happen either; he loved his brother from the first time he saw him, but he was the only one. He traded his mother for his brother, and he mourned for her, and for his brother, who would never get to feel her soft hands on his head, or hear her read him stories of brave knights.

When he got to school, and found that he couldn’t read without the letters bouncing around, his father expected him to not tell anyone, to work through the problem on his own, and he did, eventually, but it took longer than it should have, and the experience both made him hate his father and later in life, made him vow to help others like him.

He did not tell his father about his goals; he did not ask for permission either. He used the trust fund his mother had left him to become a tutor for students like him, so they wouldn’t have to struggle like he did, so they wouldn’t have to feel the shame that he still had to fight against, all these years later.

His father did not take the news well, which Jaime had expected; he kicked him out of the family home, cut him off financially, but told him if he ever smartened up, he was welcome to return.

That was eight years ago; for eight glorious years, he had lived on his own, in a two bedroom apartment in King’s Landing. He mostly lived alone, except when his brother rolled through town. 

Maybe someday things would change, but this was his life now; helping his students, hanging out with his brother, and ignoring the ache inside where the rest of his family used to be.

That was all he expected.

He had not expected a loud knock on his door at 2 in the afternoon.

He also had not expected to see a naked Amazon standing in front of him. Her skin was damp, the water from her hair dripping down the entire length of her exceptionally toned body.

He knew he was staring, but he could not look away from the well-muscled specimen in front of him. He told himself to look up, but her boobs, small they may be, were right there, and he fought a surprising strong desire to reach out to her, to lick all that water off her.

“Can I use your phone?”

Her voice was soft, such an odd contrast to her hard body. He looked at her face, and yes, he saw her, she was not beautiful, or pretty or even plain, and he pitied her for that, but as much as he felt sorry for her, he couldn’t look away from her eyes; they drew him in, even if they looked hard and cold at him.

“Come in,” he said, his voice cracking. He adjusted himself as he held the door for her, he was not a teenager anymore, he could control himself around a woman, even a naked one.

His resolve was tested a bit as she walked ahead of him, and he caught a glimpse of her firm ass, but he shook himself to clear his head.

_ Be a gentleman, you dick, get her some clothes.  _

He pointed her to his phone, a landline phone, almost ancient technology nowadays, but his cell didn’t work in the apartment very well, and he needed to be available for his students. He heard her dialing as he walked into his bathroom. He wasn’t sure if his clothes would fit her, but his bathrobe should be big enough.

He heard her talking to someone on the line; he tried not to listen as he set the robe on the chair next to the phone, but he didn’t try very hard.

“Yes, you were right, I fully admit it. It’s Operation Hunt time.”

She sighed then.

“Fine, Operation Cunt time.”

Jaime laughed, he couldn’t help it, but she didn’t respond.

“I’m at my neighbor’s. Yes, it’s fine, he’ll be gone soon. Love you, bye.”

She set the phone down gingerly, unused to handling one. She picked up his robe, and she draped it over herself, before turning back to him.

“Thank you,” she said, her voice still steady. “Can I stay here for a bit, like 30 minutes or so?”

He nodded, and she sat on the couch, and in a snap, she collapsed, sobbing into her hands, those powerful shoulders shaking as he watched helplessly.

He got up and made her a drink, it’s what Cersei always needed when she got like that, and he didn’t know what she liked, but scotch was what he had.

He set one in front of her, and sat down next to her.

“What happened?” he asked her, softly. He was insanely curious, how had any of this happened in the last five minutes, but she was hurting; he could ask once, but if she wanted privacy, he would just sit it out with her.

She looked at him, her face puffy and red.

And she told him.

***

Brienne Tarth, up and coming junior partner at the law firm of Stark, Stark and Baratheon had taken the afternoon off.

It was a minor miracle, and she smiled to herself as she stepped out of her shower.

But this case, oh this case, she had fought her heart out for this young woman, just 20 years old, who'd been fired from her job as a sales clerk because she'd refused to sleep with her boss. 

And she'd caught him too, had his entire disgusting proposition on video, the arrogant prick, and Brienne had not backed down until their settlement was five times what Brienne made in a year. 

It was a marvelous, marvelous feeling, and just this once, she was going to revel in it, starting with this rejuvenating shower.

As she turned the water off, she heard the door open, which wasn't unusual, her boyfriend Hyle, a freelance writer, didn't have a steady job, and he tended to come and go at all hours of the day and night.

But her blood went cold when she heard the giggle.

Hyle did not giggle. Hyle didn't have friends who giggled. 

She heard the bedroom door open, and she felt a cold fury wash over as she stepped out of the bathroom, and saw them, Hyle and a brunette, kissing.

Not just kissing. Hyle's hands were on her ass, and she was trying to undo her shirt while her lips stayed locked with his.

They had not seen her, they had not seen a small part of her die while she watched them. It hurt to watch him with another woman, but it hurt more to realize that she thought she had loved him, had thought he had loved her, and she'd been wrong about both of them. 

She saw their future slam shut in front of her as she slammed the bathroom door, and they broke apart and looked at her.

Hyle's face blanched. "Brie, I can explain."

Brienne was actually interested in hearing what he had to say, to see what lie he would try on her, when the woman suddenly shoved him backwards, his elbow banging into the dresser behind him.

"You were gonna fuck me in your girlfriend's bed? What's wrong with you, you asshole?" She kicked him in the shin, and Hyle grimaced, but she was barefoot, so it couldn't have hurt too much.

The woman looked at her with pity on her face. "Sorry," she mumbled before walking out.

Hyle looked at her, rubbing his elbow, looking like a dog caught with his face in the trash.

"I'm leaving," Brienne said, her voice too tight and calm, it was the courtroom voice she used to disguise her utter disgust with her opposition. "You have 30 minutes to get your crap out of my apartment, and then I'm calling security."

They had lived together, for almost two years now, and she had asked him repeatedly if he wanted his name on the lease, and each time he said no. His employment was unsteady, his paychecks inconsistent, he didn't want to be tied down, etc. etc. etc.

That was who he was exactly, she thought now. He talked about marriage, someday, but never proposed. He talked about children, how he'd like three, but never asked her how many she wanted. She'd let this stuff go, again and again, because she thought he was kind to her, that he could be the one, if she just gave him enough time.

_ But not anymore _ .

She turned her back on him, heading for the door, when he called out.

"Where am I supposed to go?"

_ To hell _

"Anywhere else."

He would not see her cry; she would cry for him but later, because she had cared about him, about their future, she had wanted so much for both of them, and it hurt so much to finally see that he didn’t care about any of that.

She slammed the front door behind her, feeling the chill in her skin, only then remembering her shower, and that she'd meant to grab her robe, but hadn't.

She felt the familiar blush spread over her face, and yes, for a moment she raised her arms to cover herself before putting them back down.

_ I have just caught my lousy boyfriend cheating on me, and I'm naked in my hallway. This is as embarrassed as I'll ever be, no sense in hiding now. _

She pulled her shoulders back, reaching down into herself, and pulling up the part of herself that could do anything, the part of herself that only ever surfaced in the courtroom.

She walked to the nearest door as she felt a shiver pass through her.

Hopefully her neighbor would be home.

***

"Wow, what an asshole."

She giggled, blushed, then giggled some more. Her face was still puffy from crying, but the tears had stopped.

"I wanted to marry him."

She stared at the wall, and he could see she was moments away from crying again and he wanted to make her feel better so much that he blurted out the first thought that came to mind.

"My first kiss was with my sister."

She looked at him in horror, all thoughts about her ex out of her head.

"We were 7, and she said she wanted to see what it was like," he said. "She said it felt like touching sandpaper, and she vowed to never kiss another boy."

She burst out laughing, and he did too. 

"Did she?"

He nodded. "But she only kisses women now, well, one woman, so I'd say she lived up to the spirit of her vow."

He remembered that day she'd come to him, they were seniors in high school and she was so upset, and she had told him she was in love, but she'd had to end it because father would never approve. And she'd had the courage to tell him she'd been dating her friend Taena, and she didn't want to hide anymore.

Cersei had been right; their father had exploded with rage when she'd brought Taena home for Sevenmas her freshman year of college and he'd seen them holding hands. Like Jaime would experience a year later when he changed his major, he cut her off and kicked her out, and Taena's family took her in, and she's been obnoxiously happy ever since.

She smiled, and then her face froze as she heard her apartment door open.

They stood up together, and she opened Jaime's door, and he got a look at the asshole, and wow, he was completely ordinary and absolutely not worth her time. He had this irrational desire to punch this jerk’s lights out for treating  _ her _ like that, but he brushed it aside. 

_ He just lost his whole world because of his arrogance, that’s punishment enough. _

"Hyle," she said, her voice calm, but he could see a slight tremor in the hand behind her back. "My key."

Hyle set the box down at his feet, fished out his keys from his pocket, and glared at her as he took her apartment key off the ring. He threw it at her feet before picking up his box and walking away without another word.

She sighed, but scooped it up before turning back to him. "Thanks, uh…"

He realized then that she didn't know his name, and he didn't know hers. He held out his hand, and she took it. "Jaime."

"Brienne."

And she went home, locking the door behind her.

***

A few days later, while he was setting up for a video session with one of his students, he heard a knock.

He opened the door, and he smiled up at her, fully clothed this time, holding his robe.

"Hello again," he said, smiling at the memory of the last time she was at his door.

Almost like she could read his mind, she blushed, her face growing red, her neck too.

_ How far down does that go? _

He brushed the thought aside as she handed him his robe; it was still warm from the dryer.

"Thanks for that."

She took two steps toward her door, then turned back to him.

"Are you doing anything right now?"

"No."

She smiled. "I never really thanked you, and one of my clients gave me this fancy bottle of wine I was going to crack open. Care to join me?"

She pulled away from him, shifting on her feet. Her words were casual, but she was nervous, and he found it adorable.

"Sure, give me ten minutes, and I'll come over."

Did he really need ten minutes? No, but he wanted to look nice for her, so he ditched his casual clothes, opting for a button-up shirt and fancy slacks ensemble Cersei had given him for Sevenmas.

He slapped on some cologne too, and he couldn't pin down why exactly he felt the need for it, but it didn't matter, because he was due at her door.

He leaned against the wall, it felt right for some reason, and knocked on her door.

He heard her gasp, and she flushed again as she held the door for him.

When he moved in, he'd suspected that the corner apartments were bigger, and boy, had he been right; he had two small bedrooms, and she had three, with a large living/dining room area, and a big kitchen on top of that.

"Your place is gorgeous."

She smiled, her whole face lit up. "I used my signing bonus for the down payment, then spent two years decorating and painting until it was exactly the way I wanted it."

It paid off, he thought to himself as he looked around. Her walls were blues, greens, greys all swirled together. At certain angles, the waves looked like they were moving, and it was incredibly soothing to look at.

"Wow," he said after looking everything over. "Just wow."

"I love living here, but I hated leaving the island where I grew up, so I brought it with me."

She grinned at him, and he caught a glimpse of crooked teeth, and she jumped when she caught him looking.

She led him to the table, and there was the wine, and she'd spread out cheese and crackers, some bread and chocolate for them too.

"I'm celebrating," she said as she sat down. "And saying thank you." She raised her glass and he clinked his glass against hers, toasting good company in his head.

Tyrion would know better, the man had a nose for the stuff, but Jaime thought this wine was exceptional, one of the best he'd ever had for sure. 

"What are we celebrating?"

He wasn't subtle, never had been, but he got what he wanted, and right now he wanted her to blush again, and she did.

"Operation Hunt was a success."

"Don't you mean Operation Cunt?"

She snorted, and she blushed again, and he wanted to reach across the table and take her hand, but he didn't. She'd just dumped that loser, it was too early for someone new.

"Spill it Brienne, what is Operation Cunt?"

She laughed again and took a sip of wine. "My friend Margaery is a full-time meddler, and when Hyle and I moved in together, I put his name on a lot of my assets, like my car, some credit cards, stuff like that."

She took another sip, and her hand shook slightly, but she kept going. "Margaery thought I was insane for doing that, but I wanted us to be partners, equals in our relationship. So she set up this system, without telling me, that would make severing him from my life easier if we broke up."

She shook her head, and he thought he heard a sniffle. "I was furious when she told me, but she was kind too. She brought it up one time, and she never told anyone else, and she was polite to him, even when he was a jerk. And dammit, she was right about him all along."

Jaime nodded. It wasn't kind, but it was the truth, which was mostly more important. 

"Why were you with a guy like that?"

Her face stiffened as she looked at him, a hard grimace settled onto her face. 

“He asked.”

Jaime heard the resignation in her voice, and watched her shoulders slump, as if she was trying to make herself smaller. 

Whatever she was thinking, it couldn’t be good, and he didn’t want her to shrink for anyone, man or woman, so he reached for her hand, trying to comfort her, anything to make her feel better about kicking that loser to the curb. And she didn't draw it back. 

He rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb, and he had this image of himself holding her face in his hands and kissing her sadness away.

He let go of her hand while he cleared his throat, trying to tell his body to calm down, even if it was futile. She was in no state for romance right now. 

"So, you mentioned a client, what do you do?"

"I'm a junior partner at Stark, Stark and Baratheon."

_ That explains the digs _

"I know, they're more than a little snooty, but when Renly recruited me, I told him I'd only accept if I could take on clients  _ I _ wanted to represent. He said as long as I didn't complain about my salary being lower because of it, it was fine, so I joined."

A dark look crossed her face. "I lose more than I win, and it gets hard some days, which is why it's so important to celebrate the victories."

She raised her glass again, and he clinked her glass.

"And you?"

"I'm no crusader," he said, but still smirking. "I'm a tutor for students with learning disabilities."

She laughed, but not cruelly. "I really, really wasn't expecting that."

He huffed at that, amused but annoyed too. "What did you expect?"

"Oh, I don't know, an actor, a model, something like that."

He wrinkled his nose at her suggestions, and she laughed, a full bodied laugh that gave him goosebumps.

"I'm more than just a pretty face," he said, with mock hurt in his voice. "Although it is  _ very _ pretty."

She laughed again, softer this time, and nodded at him.

"Very pretty," she whispered, and he felt a tightness in his chest that wasn't there before.

"Why that though?"

He hated this part, but better to get it out of the way early. "I'm dyslexic, and my father refused to get any help for me when I was younger, and I spent years struggling with letters, struggles that I didn't need to go through if the old bastard had just gotten me the help I needed."

He felt that old anger rise up again, but he tamped it down and took a drink.

"So now  _ I'm  _ that help. I discreetly offer my services to families who need the help but don't want the society pages to find out. And I shamelessly overcharge them so I can help kids who aren't well off too."

"Wow," she said, and her face was bright, her eyes shining.

He reached for her hand again. "Wow." And she blushed.

_ Bad timing be damned, I want more. _

He stood up and moved his chair next to hers. He took her hand again, this time holding it in his lap. He reached out to her, bringing her head closer to him, his lips getting closer and closer to hers, when the alarm on his phone went off.

"Dammit," he said as he stood up and turned it off. "I have to go, I have a session."

She nodded, and he noted the disappointment on her face. 

"I could come back after?" 

_ Say yes, say yes, say yes _

"No, I have to get some sleep, I've got an early flight tomorrow morning."

She walked him to the door, and he felt she wanted to say something, and he did too, but he had no idea what.

"Uh, have a good flight."

He wanted to kiss her, but not just kiss her, he wanted so much more, but the moment was gone and Daven would be waiting for him.

"Good night."

She shut the door, and he could swear he heard a sigh, but it might have been his imagination.

***

In the following weeks, he tried to forget about her.

She was just next door, but the one time he had the courage to knock on her door, nobody answered.

It was ridiculous, he told himself, to be so hung up on a woman he barely knew. They had only met twice, with only one pseudo date, and did that really count?

But he still wanted more; he wanted to tell about this new kid Pod, who had a severe stutter, but was already making progress. He wanted to show her the certificate he'd made for Daven, who had worked and worked and now could read out loud with barely any slip ups.

And he wanted to hear from her, about her latest clients, and offer her a place to vent if she lost and a glass of wine to celebrate when she won (although he could not afford the good stuff like she could).

He wanted all that, and he had to tell himself that she must not agree, and that was that.

He had moved on, he told himself that everyday he saw the door to her apartment, but that didn't stop his traitorous heart from leaping in his chest when he heard a soft knock on his door.

He hoped it was her as he rushed to the door.

And it was her, holding two bottles of beer in her hands, with a crooked smile on her face.

He held the door for her, and she hesitated for only a second before settling on the couch.

"Hi," he said, throwing a smirk on his face, hoping it disguised the joy he felt in seeing her.

"Hi," she said.

She pulled a bottle opener from her pocket, and he didn't care for beer, but this one wasn't too bad.

"How was your trip?"

She rolled her eyes, and flung herself backward.

"I agreed to do a favor for one of the partners, the daughter of a family friend, and she's a good kid, but she keeps getting in trouble because she cannot control herself."

She took a sip again, letting the cold drink calm her slightly. "She'd been at a party, and some frat guys were pawing at an underage girl, and she got the girl out of there, but then she grabbed a bottle and hit the ringleader over the head with it, a boy who just happens to be the son of a sheriff's deputy."

She shook her head and smiled. "And Lyanna only had to apologise to the little shit to avoid a record, and she refused, and it set off a slew of legal wrangling from both sides."

Jaime chuckled, because he admired that girl without even knowing her, and he could tell Brienne did too. "You get her out of it?"

"Mostly. She's got some probation time, and she has to watch herself, but she didn't apologize, which is the real victory."

He raised his beer to Brienne and this girl she loved, happy to have her back.

"That's why I was gone so long," the slight crack in her voice betraying her attempt to be cool. "I just got back this morning and had to check in at the office."

She placed her hand in the cushion between them.

_ She's challenging me, she wants to see what I'll do if she makes a small move. _

Without another thought, he reached forward and grabbed her hand, bringing it up and giving her a small kiss.

She blushed and a beautiful shade of red spread across her face. He let go of her hand, setting it down and reached for her, pulled her toward him.

He didn't really know her, but as he kissed her, he felt like he already knew everything he needed to know that he didn't want to kiss anyone else ever again. It was an absurd thought, but it didn't stop him from believing it.

He had dated before, but it never felt like this, this ‘rightness’ was there from the beginning, and he couldn’t wait for more.

She pulled back a second, her face still flushed, but with a sad look in her wide eyes.

"Are you sure about this?" she whispered. 

He thought about her last boyfriend, a man who only wanted to take from her, who didn’t value her at all, just what she could give him.

_ She deserves so much more. _

He tucked her hair behind her ear and nodded.

He had wanted to touch her since the first moment he saw her, and now he finally got his wish.

It was so much more than anything he could ever have expected, just like her.

**Author's Note:**

> That's Lyanna Mormont, not Lyanna Stark, that Brienne helps out of a jam.


End file.
